On minimal triangulations of products of convex polygons (Q1017917)

The author focuses on the minimal number of simplices needed in a triangulation of the products of two convex polygons. All triangulations are supposed not to have other vertices than those of the original polytope. By using the cocycle \(Vol_4\), which is cohomologous to the volume form on the product of two copies of the hyperbolic plane, new lower bounds are determined for the minimal number \(T(m,n)\) of top dimensional simplices in a triangulation of the product \(P(m)\times P(n)\), where \(P(m),P(n)\) denote, respectively, the convex polygons with \(m\) and \(n\) vertices. In particular it is shown that \(T(m,n)\geq 3.125 mn-5(m+n)+6\), and that \(T(m,4)\geq \frac{23}{3}m-\frac{44}{3}\), so improving some previously known lower bounds [\textit{L. Bowen, J. A. De Loera, M. Develin} and \textit{F. Santos}, Topology 44, No. 2, 321--339 (2005; Zbl 1064.57014)]. Proofs are carried out with homological arguments.